Leon D. Young
The Democrats and Republicans convened last week and focused their attention on passing the state budget (Assembly Bill 40).
Based on their stark and conflicting depictions of the bill, it was hard to imagine at times that the two warring parties were actually talking about the same legislation.
To have Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) tell it, this current budget is the best thing since sliced bread.
Speaker Vos would go on to extol other aspects of this document. For instance, Wisconsin has gone from having a budget deficit to a budget surplus.
Moreover, the state’s credit rating has improved so it actually costs the state less to borrow money.
Democrats, on the other hand, have a far different take on the fiscal state of Wisconsin and the provisions in this state budget.
To begin with, there are over 100 policy items (non-fiscal), some of which include:
• Residency requirement that prohibits local units of government from placing residency requirements on public workers.
• Cable providers would have the ability to cut off services immediately to consumers for failure to pay bill.
• Bail bondsmen would be permitted to return to Wisconsin in certain counties (Dane, Kenosha, Milwaukee, Racine or Waukesha).
More importantly, this budget rejects a comprehensive Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act.
This means that 85,000 fewer people will be covered under BadgerCare, which will cost Wisconsin taxpayers $120 million more than what Democrats proposed.
And, if that weren’t enough, this budget also provides a $673 million income tax cut over the biennium, which Republicans have described as an attempt to give more money back to the people.
But, in truth, this tax cut actually gives more money back to wealthier citizens (those making $300,000 and more).
Hence, this budget gives greater financial deference to job creators than to middle-class families.
Wisconsin is indeed open for “business.”
This is really code for big business and the business that benefits the wealthy.
For working-class families, however, this budget is major hoax that relies too heavily on a trickledown approach.
History tells us that Voodoo Economics didn’t work in the 1980s under Ronald Reagan, and they won’t work today under presidential hopeful Scott Walker.
This may explain why Wisconsin is 44th in the nation in terms of new job creation.